The war in Europe was reaching its cataclysmic final months with Germany surrounded on all sides. Most of Hitler's forces had been driven from Poland by the Red Army and the Soviets were poised a short distance from Berlin, while the Western allies, having repulsed the Fuhrer's Ardennes offensive, were preparing to cross the Rhine. More than ever Hitler needed his people to stiffen their resolve for the coming onslaught. To demonstrate what will be expected of the German people, and what they could achieve if they refused ...
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The war in Europe was reaching its cataclysmic final months with Germany surrounded on all sides. Most of Hitler's forces had been driven from Poland by the Red Army and the Soviets were poised a short distance from Berlin, while the Western allies, having repulsed the Fuhrer's Ardennes offensive, were preparing to cross the Rhine. More than ever Hitler needed his people to stiffen their resolve for the coming onslaught. To demonstrate what will be expected of the German people, and what they could achieve if they refused to acknowledge defeat, a major feature film would be shown, featuring the legendary place which held out against Napoleon when he invaded Prussia in 1806 - the city of Kolberg. After crushing the Prussian Army in 1806, French forces swept into the Prussian province of Pomerania. One by one most Prussian fortresses surrendered, mostly without offering any resistance, but Kolberg stood firm. The small and weakly-fortified city held out for almost four months, despite being surrounded by Napoleon's forces, with Major von Gneisenau organising a citizen's militia to aid the army in its defence. Though much of the city was blasted into ruin, Kolberg remained in Prussian hands until the war with France ended with the signing of the Peace of Tilsit, by which time its defence had become legendary. Even though the Third Reich was literally entering its death-throes, in attempting to reproduce the siege of Kolberg on film, thousands of experts, extras and horses were taken from the war effort by the Reich Minister of Propaganda, Joseph Goebbels. The film's emphasis was to show how civilians and the military can work together to save Germany - just as Kolberg had been saved from the French. The result has been stated to be the most expensive feature film ever made in Germany. This book examines the dramatic conditions under which the film was produced, and the scale of the resources needed to do so, followed by its first showing on 30 January 1945. All Goebbels' efforts, though, were to no avail, as the film never went on general release. A month later, as the author reveals, Kolberg found itself under siege once again, but this time, after bitter house-to-house fighting, it fell to the Soviets in just two weeks.
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Very good in very good dust jacket. The dust jacket is in poor conditon. The copy shows light shelf wear, but is in otherwise good condition. Very Clean Copy-Over 500, 000 Internet Orders Filled.
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Very Good. Some bumps/scuffs to cover edges. Scratches/scuffs/laminate peeling to dustjacket. Content as new. Contains: Unspecified. Includes unspecified.
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PLEASE NOTE, WE DO NOT SHIP TO DENMARK. New Book. Shipped from UK in 4 to 14 days. Established seller since 2000. Please note we cannot offer an expedited shipping service from the UK.
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Seller's Description:
PLEASE NOTE, WE DO NOT SHIP TO DENMARK. New Book. Shipped from UK in 4 to 14 days. Established seller since 2000. Please note we cannot offer an expedited shipping service from the UK.
